The North Carolina rental agreements are contracts between a landlord (or owner) overseeing a real property and the tenant who wishes to use it. The tenant makes regular payments (“rent”) in exchange. Terms are set via the rental agreements, but they must comply with North Carolina’s landlord-tenant laws.
North Carolina Rental Agreement Types
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North Carolina Required Lease Disclosures
- Late Fee Disclosure (required for some) – Any late fees that are going to be imposed in a North Carolina lease agreement must be disclosed in the lease to be enforced in court (if challenged), and may not exceed $15 or 5% of the balance due (whichever is greater), or $4 and 5% of the balance (whichever is greater).
- Lead Based Paint Disclosure (required for some) – North Carolina requires landlords to include a lead based paint disclosure alongside an EPA-approved informational pamphlet and notice of any existing lead based paint in the rental property if it was built before 1978 and therefore is at risk of containing harmful lead based paints that pose a threat to new tenants.
To learn more about required disclosures in North Carolina, click here.
North Carolina Landlord Tenant Laws
- Warranty of Habitability – In North Carolina, a landlord must reliably provide safe electric features, running water, indoor heating, a toilet, sanitary facilities, and more to all tenants. They must also provide repairs upon request in accordance with guidelines set forth in a lease. If these requirements are not met, a tenant has a limited ability to withhold rent.
- Evictions – Evictions for non-payment of rent in North Carolina always necessitate a 10-day notice. However, notice requirements for lease violations and illegal acts are mostly up to the landlord’s discretion. As such, some evictions in this state may be immediate.
- Security Deposits – North Carolina places different security deposit limits for week-to week (2 weeks’ rent), month-to-month (1 ½ months’ rent), and longer leases (2 months’ rent). Security deposits of any amount must be re-dispersed by a landlord here within 30 days of lease termination, in any case.
- Lease Termination – North Carolina maintains different termination notification standards for periodic leases. These amount to 2 days for week-to-week leases, 7 days for month-to-month leases, and 1 month for yearly leases. A fixed-term lease may also be terminated on the grounds of active military duty, landlord harassments, unit uninhabitability, or domestic violence.
- Rent Increases & Fees – North Carolina landlords are fully free to raise rent prices as they see fit without providing notice or justification. Their ability to charge certain fees depends on the applicable lease’s length, though. Month-to-month late rent fees cannot be worth more than 5% of the missing payment, for example. Bounced check fees also cannot exceed $25.
- Landlord Entry – North Carolina landlords may enter a unit whenever they wish due to a lack of state regulation. Only a lease agreement can limit this right, including in cases of emergency. Emergencies typically allow for permission-less entry, though.
- Settling Legal Disputes – North Carolina’s small claims court will hear most any landlord-tenant dispute valued at up to $10,000. This includes eviction cases.
To learn more about landlord tenant laws in North Carolina, click here.
